Drama - Year B - Easter 6

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Drama - Year B - Easter 6

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DRAMA—SIXTH SUNDAY AFTER EPIPHANY, YEAR B

Bible reference: Mark 1:40-45

 

LOOK AT ME

 

CHARACTERS: A man, his wife, a temple priest

 

(Wife, priest, and man enter in that order and stand in a line facing the audience. They speak to the audience as if the others are not there, they freeze in position when not speaking, priest stands sternly with arms crossed, wife adopts pose of despair with face in hands, man begins to speak)

 

MAN:

(Excitedly, holding arms out) Look at me! Just look at me! (Turns around) Do you notice anything different? If you knew me three days ago you would. If you knew what I looked like then you’d notice a big change...(Pause then bitterly, remembering) Only three days ago I was an outcast, a diseased leper. Formally declared unclean by the temple officials. Driven away from my family. Rejected by my friends and thrown out of the city. (Turns away from others and freezes in attitude of rejection)      

 

PRIEST:

(Dogmatically) The law says that those with the disease have to stay away from those who aren’t afflicted. They must stay outside (Holds up hand making halt sign towards man as if barring him from city on word ‘outside’) the city until the disease is healed. (Freezes in that position)

 

WIFE:

(Despairing) I will never forget the day we first discovered his leprosy, never!        We knew he had to leave for our sake. I also knew my life would never be        the same. I faced the possibility that my young children would never know        their father, and that I would never see or be held by my husband again! (Reaches out towards man in despair and freezes)

 

PRIEST:

(Dogmatically) The law says that those with the disease have to stay away from those who aren’t afflicted. They must stay outside the city until the disease is healed. (Holds up hand making halt sign towards woman as if        barring her from her husband and freezes)

 

MAN:

(Shaking head in wonder) But three days ago everything changed. Three days ago I met Jesus. He was preaching all through Galilee and when I saw him, I knew I had nothing to lose. (Takes a few steps towards an imaginary Jesus as he speaks) I went up to him (Falls to his knees), fell to my knees        and begged (Begs), Lord if you are willing, make me clean! (Freezes in begging pose)

 

PRIEST:

(Appalled) Disregarding all laws, Jesus reached out and touched the man. An act that brings about defilement. It was unthinkable! (Freezes in pose of disgust)

 

MAN:

(Looking at imaginary Jesus) He looked at me with such kindness, and he... touched me. (Touches cheek in wonderment) It had been years since anyone looked at me like that, let alone touched me. (Looking at imaginary Jesus) I am willing, he said, be clean. (Stands, amazed) Instantly the leprosy was gone. (Joyfully) I was cured! He told me to present myself to the priest. (Goes over to priest) Boy, did that priest get a shock! (Turns to face priest and freezes)

 

PRIEST:

(Shocked, walking around man as if inspecting him) Never had I seen such a total recovery. Old limbs made new, his skin completely healed. (Walks away from man and wife in confusion, talks to audience) After all my years as a priest, and after all the study I’d done, I could say nothing to explain it. I was speechless! (Turns away from man and wife in confusion and freezes)

 

WIFE:

(To audience, remembering) I remember I was putting the children to bed when I heard a sound at the door. I turned (Turns towards man) and saw a man standing there. At first I didn’t recognise him. But as I stepped closer (Takes a step towards man) I knew all my prayers had been answered. (To audience) My husband had come home, healed and whole, with a fire burning in his eyes. (Freezes looking at husband)

 

MAN:

(To audience) Jesus had told me not to tell anyone what he’d done for me. (Turns toward wife) But as I stood there (Takes a step towards wife), in front of my wife (Reaches out as if to touch her cheek), and reached out to touch her with a hand (Looks wonderingly at hand) that was no longer a diseased mess (To audience), I knew I couldn’t keep it from her. (Excitedly taking wife’s hand) I needed to tell her, I needed to tell everybody about the man who healed my body and ignited my heart! (Man and wife exit joyfully hand in hand, priest follows after, shaking head in amazement)

 

 

© Rebecca Simboras 1999

 

Permission is given for the owner of this disk to make sufficient copies of this script for their group or congregation, for rehearsal and performance purposes only.